She is the Triple Goddess of Crossroads, the Goddess of Magic, and the Goddess of the Underworld.
She is the famed irresistible Death, the invincible and unparalleled Empress.
She is a unique existence; she belongs neither to the sky, nor to the sea, nor truly to the Underworld, yet she holds an exalted position in all places.
She is Hecate!
Just as Jason's initial journey was about to reach its end, Hecate appeared.
Although the trial she had bestowed upon Jason had not yet reached its final conclusion, in Hecate's heart she had already acknowledged Jason.
She acknowledged him as her student.
Because she had always been watching silently from the shadows.
From the very beginning in the Underworld, from the moment his body was tempered by the undying flames of the River Styx until now.
Everything Jason had experienced, Hecate had seen with her own eyes.
Thus, even though at first she had kept Jason only for the sake of her experiments, even though she had sought him out initially only because of Medea, now she truly recognized him!
"Teacher Hecate, are you leaving?"
Just as Hecate finished speaking and stood up to depart, Jason noticed and instinctively looked up, asking her without thinking.
Hecate, who had been about to nod, met Jason's gaze. Seeing the still-childlike, tender face of the young boy, she hesitated briefly, then sighed softly and said, "Never mind. Teacher won't leave tonight. I'll stay with you."
As she spoke, Hecate reached out and gently patted Jason's head.
Jason, on the other hand, was a little dumbfounded.
Huh? Teacher, why did you suddenly decide not to leave?
Although that was what he thought, Jason naturally did not dare say it aloud.
Thus, that night, Hecate held Jason in her arms, leaned against the golden-horned deer beside the campfire, closed her eyes, and rested with him for the entire night.
The next day, when sunlight fell upon Jason's body and he opened his eyes after having fallen asleep very late the previous night, Hecate had naturally already departed.
Leaning against the golden-horned deer, Jason sat there in a daze for a while.
"Sister Deer, tell me, why do I suddenly feel like Teacher has become… a little more reliable? Is this just my imagination?"
The golden-horned deer glanced at Jason and did not reply.
It merely let out two soft calls, stuck out its tongue to lick his face, and urged him to set off quickly.
"Alright, alright, Sister Deer, stop licking! I'm getting up now. I'll wash my face and then we'll leave!" Jason scrambled to his feet, shook his head after a brief moment of thought, and tossed all the random thoughts out of his mind.
Although he did not know what had gotten into Hecate, it did not seem to be a bad thing.
"The future, becoming an immortal existence… all of that still feels far away for the current me. In any case, the most important task right now is to find Persephone and then study magic properly under Teacher Hecate!"
With that determination, Jason set off on the final leg of his current journey together with the golden-horned deer that the moon goddess Artemis had temporarily lent him.
Now bearing the protection of Hecate, Goddess of Crossroads; guided by Athena, Goddess of Wisdom; armed with the blade of Apollo, God of Light; and mounted upon the steed of Artemis, Goddess of the Moon.
The remainder of Jason's journey became extraordinarily smooth.
Riding the golden-horned deer, Jason encountered almost no further obstructions from anyone.
After all, no one would be foolish enough to block the path of a boy riding the towering golden-horned deer. In this world, many people knew—especially the hunters who roamed the forests—that the golden-horned deer was the beloved favorite of the great moon goddess and goddess of the hunt, Artemis!
Thus, very quickly, word began to spread rapidly among the hunters about a white-clothed, golden-haired, green-eyed youth riding a golden-horned deer.
Several days later, Atalanta, who had already returned home, found herself bombarded with questions from her uncle and the curious former colleagues from that hunting party!
A white-clothed, golden-haired, green-eyed boy… It had only been a few days; how could they possibly have forgotten Jason?
Naturally, they were all extremely curious why the hunting goddess Artemis would bestow her golden-horned deer upon Jason.
At first, Atalanta had not wanted to answer, but when she heard people saying how much Artemis favored Jason, she could not hold back.
"It wasn't bestowed! It was only lent temporarily! Lady Artemis only lent it to him for a while, and that was actually my suggestion!"
"He is not favored by Lady Artemis at all! He has no such qualification! So stop talking nonsense about him being liked by Lady Artemis, or you might incur her punishment!"
"What is he doing? …He seems to be carrying a divine oracle, I suppose. I naturally cannot reveal the details, but it wasn't given to him by Lady Artemis… though it does have a tiny bit to do with Lady Artemis. The main connection appears to be with Lady Hecate!"
"Hm? Besides Lady Artemis, were there others…? Lord Apollo was involved too, and if there were more, it would be Lady Athena…"
At first, Atalanta had only intended to explain Jason's relationship with Artemis, but under the barrage of questions from all sides, she unknowingly let slip a little more than planned.
By the time the slow-to-realize Atalanta noticed, it was already too late.
And so, the very first story began to spread gradually from the mouths of the hunters.
There was a young boy clad in pure white robes, white as snow.
He had short golden hair and holy cyan eyes.
Upon his shoulders rested a divine oracle from the gods; he was to accomplish a great deed in their stead!
Though young, he possessed beauty that rivaled even the great god of light, Apollo, and thus even the great Apollo doted upon him!
Lord Apollo had even granted him a golden sword; no one, not even the fiercest beast, could survive beneath that blade!
The wisest goddess of wisdom, Athena, personally guided his path.
The moon goddess and goddess of the hunt, Artemis, bestowed upon him her most beloved golden-horned deer.
And the name of that boy was Jason!
When the matter had thoroughly spread and could no longer be contained, Atalanta tearfully prayed to Artemis for forgiveness.
Artemis, however, did not mind at all, and since Atalanta was her most cherished follower, she forgave her immediately.
What left Atalanta utterly speechless afterward was her uncle and those hunters who had briefly guided Jason that day.
For a very long time afterward, they wore expressions of immense pride and boasted to anyone they met that they had once led Jason's party!
Was that really something to be proud of?
When one thought about it carefully, it actually was something that would make ordinary mortals proud.
Yet whenever Atalanta recalled the look of open disdain Jason had once directed at her…
Atalanta gnashed her teeth in frustration!
"You two will definitely meet again someday." She also remembered the smiling words Artemis had said to her when they parted.
Atalanta silently made a vow in her heart!
Just you wait, Jason. We never settled who was superior between us. The next time we meet, I will definitely make you acknowledge that I am stronger and faster than you!
For a very long time, Jason himself remained completely unaware of all this.
Because after receiving the companionship of the golden-horned deer, in order to avoid unnecessary trouble, Jason almost never visited any marketplaces again.
And not long after parting from Artemis and Atalanta—roughly a week later—Jason finally arrived at the destination of this journey.